The Devoted Husband
by perpetualpathology
Summary: Sam falls during a early morning run and is taken to the ED in immense pain. Her extensive injury means that, despite her reluctance, she has to admit that she needs help. And through the coming months, Tom supports Sam through her recovery and physiotherapy sessions to get her back on her feet. And in return for his support, Sam conjures up a surprise for her husband :)
1. Chapter 1

**For some reason, FanFiction decided to delete my fic twice last night so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it won't delete it again tonight! **

* * *

In Sam's opinion, the best time to go for a run was early in the morning, before everyone else (including her husband) in Holby was awake and without the constant grumbling of cars. Of course, Tom thought she was barking mad because even by the time she got back from her run, he still wouldn't be out of bed - that's how early she left, or rather how lazy he was - but it was just one of her little quirks that he loved about her.

Another one of those quirks, was her determination and stubbornness (or as he liked to call it, pig-headedness) and the fact that she would never give up on something. But little did she know that soon, those personal traits would be challenged because they're weren't always a good thing...

It was early June and despite a rather heavy downpour during the previous night, the sun was just beginning to rise and Holby Park was covered by a mist as the water from the soggy ground evaporated into the atmosphere. Sam was joined by only the sounds of nature as she ran at a pace of between a fast jog and a sprint around the large pond as she focused on taking as deep a breath as she could manage without passing out to improve her ever increasing lung function - all part of her lengthy plan that was almost complete to get fit for the summer.

But what Sam wasn't focusing on was putting one foot in front of the other because after years of running, it just sort of came naturally to her and as she twisted her neck to look at the wildlife on the pond - including all sorts of amazing dragonflies and magnificent butterflies - she had not been looking where she was going and she had gone to far to the edge of the path. The rainfall had made the ground muddy so immediately she slipped down the slope towards the pond, but what stopped her from sliding into the water was her right foot colliding large rock and as soon as the sole of her trainer and the rock touched Sam yelp out in pain and the sound of bones snapping made her feel physically sick.

"Ah." Sam panted as she caught her breath back whilst she tried to keep her leg perfectly still because even a millimetre of movement caused her more pain. She immediately clicked into doctor mode and made sure that she hadn't hit her head, before she tried to asses her one and only injury; her leg. She was in black running leggings that were tight on her muscular, toned legs and so she was almost certain that no bone had displaced and punctured the skin. However, the crunching sound that she could not forget alerted her to the fact that she had almost certainly broken something. The question was, what had she broken?

She looked around in the empty park for someone who could help her because she didn't have her phone on her, she never did when she went for a run, and thankfully her eyes fell upon a young man jogging on the other side of the pond.

"Hey! Over here!" Sam shouted at the top of her voice which grabbed the man's attention and thankfully she didn't need to say anything more as he changed direction and started heading towards her. It was only when he was a few meters away from her that she recognised it to be Ethan Hardy, one of her colleagues.

"Sam?" He asked confusedly as he looked at his workmate who was lying on her back on the floor in the muddy grass.

"Can I use your phone?" Sam asked as she looked at him over her shoulder because he didn't want to go down the slippery mud and she was in too much pain to move.

"Do you want me to call an ambulance?" Ethan asked because the young woman was clearly in a lot of pain.

"No, I need to ring Tom."

"Surely you should ring an ambulance first." Ethan said confusedly but he carefully threw her the iPhone nevertheless. Sam completely ignored him because her adrenaline rush was preventing her from thinking straight so she dialled her home number and after a few rings, Tom picked up.

"_Hello_?" He queried sleepily.

"Tom, it's me. You need to come down to the park now. I... I slipped and-" Upon hearing his wife's panicked voice, Tom was woken from his groggy state and paid attention to her every word.

"_Calm down or you're gonna give yourself a panic attack_." Tom joked halfheartedly. "_Just tell me slowly what happened_." He ordered.

"No just come now." Sam pleaded as she tried to prevent her eyes from watering because the pain pulsating in her leg was almost unbearable.

* * *

After quickly throwing on the closest pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie, Tom grabbed his phone, keys and wallet and ran out of the door. He rang a non-emergency ambulance on his way to the park demanding that they go to Holby park as soon as they could but that the situation was not life threatening and that he would meet them there and by the time he did, he looked as though he had needed a ambulance himself after all the running.

"Ah Tom, she's not letting me anywhere near her leg but she's pretty sure it's broken." Ethan stated. "Oh and be careful, the mud is really slippery." He added as Tom slowly descended until he was besides his wife. "Thanks mate, you can go now." Tom have a grateful smile to the man who had looked after Sam and stayed with her so that she wasn't alone, even though Tom knew that Sam had probably not been a very nice person to be around.

"Alright well I've got to go to work, I'll probably see you in the ED soon." Ethan smiled before he put his phone back in his pocket and began jogging again.

"I feel sick." Sam muttered as she buried her head in Tom's chest as he got down on the floor with her so that she wasn't by herself.

"Did you bang your head?" Tom asked as he tucked a bit of hair that had come loose from her ponytail behind her ear and Sam shook her head.

"It's the pain." She croaked.

"What actually happened then?"

"I just slipped and I thought I was gonna fall into the pond but my right foot hit the rock." Sam stated as she looked down at the boulder that her foot was leaning against where she had barely moved her leg away to prevent further injury. "Y'know, you hear all kinds of crunches and cracks in the ED but when you know it's your bones it's just... Horrible." Sam shuddered as the noise played through her mind again. "Anyway, what's happening? How're we gonna get up?" Sam asked as she looked up the short but steep slope that she had fallen down where the pathway was at the top.

"You're not gonna do anything. I've called a 111 ambulance so they'll be here within 10 minutes I should think. Then we'll get your leg in a splint and get you on a spinal board and lift you up; I don't want you putting any pressure on that leg." Tom said sternly. "Just stay nice and calm and you'll have pain relief before you know it." Tom said reassuringly.

* * *

"Hello? Ambulance service."

"Great." Sam muttered as she knew that the voice belonged to none other than Iain Dean.

"Over here." Tom shouted and Iain and Jeff ran over with a medical bag on their back each.

"What happened to you princess?" Jeff queried.

"She slipped. Right I need a frac-pack for her entire leg and foot, get a spinal board to lift her to the trolley, and she needs entonox and 5 of morphine." Tom ordered.

"Have you checked her circulation?" Jeff asked.

"Yeah, her pedal pulse is fine." Tom nodded.

"Sam is there any change you could be pregnant?" Jeff asked quietly, though he knew the Iain and Tom heard him too. It's just that if she as, she eould be best to avoid the morphine.

"No, no I'm not." Sam shook her head.

"Right Iain, you get the spinal board and frac-pack, I'll get the pain relief." Jeff ordered. "We'll be right back Sam, just stay calm."

Once the pair had ran back to the ambulance, Sam just wanted time to fly by because she was in agony and no matter how hard she tried to keep her right leg completely still, she kept on accidentally twitching it or moving it slightly.

"For the record, I hope this is a one off because I don't like being woken up at 6 in the morning." Tom joked playfully to lighten the atmosphere.

"Why? Did I wear you out last night?" Sam joked.

"Wow." Tom laughed at her before she grimaced in pain because she had moved slightly. "Alright, just take deep breaths, you're gonna be fine." Tom said reassuringly as he took her hand in his and gave it a small squeeze.

"Tom do you wanna do the honours?" Jeff asked was he arrived with a small zipped container that contained morphine, as well as a canister of entonox.

"Er hang on, he's not allowed." Iain protested.

"I'm a doctor." Tom scowled as he took out the syringe and got the correct dose in the needle.

"Yeah but you're-"

"Iain, leave it." Jeff scalded and so Tom flicked the needle to get rid of any air bubbles.

"Right do you want this in your bum or your hip?" Tom asked jokily because the morphine had to go into a large muscle - she didn't have an IV cannula in because she didn't need one.

"Where do you think?" Sam moaned sarcastically and so Tom rolled up Sam's running shirt slightly and then injected it into her hip.

"Right, that should kick in soon. Do you wanna start on the entonox while we get your leg into the frac-pack?" Tom suggested as he gently rubbed her hip so that the injection didn't cause her much pain.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"Right Tom, if you want to just support her and hold the entonox for her, we'll get her leg stable." Jeff stated as he and Iain carefully moved down the slope.

* * *

Sam's life wasn't at risk and so instead of going into resus, Sam was wheeled straight through to a cubicle which Jeff had radioed ahead to save, for one of their own.

"Right, I'm gonna go and get a doctor for you." Jeff stated after they had helped Sam to shuffle across onto the bed and he and Iain were ready for their next call.

"Yeah, thanks Jeff." Sam said gratefully as he walked off and Tom sat on the chair besides Sam's bed.

"God, I'm starving." Tom complained as he rubbed his grumbling stomach - he unlike Sam, could never go without breakfast.

"Yeah and I'm in pain. Shut it." Sam retorted.

"Yes Mrs Kent." Tom said like a naughty school boy and Sam rolled her eyes because she knew that he loved calling her that name.

"Right, sorry about the wait we're a doctor down and- oh..." Zoe had begun to speak as she read Sam's notes that Jeff had given her but she then realised who her patient was.

"Yeah I'm gonna have to call in sick too." Sam stated with a hint of amusement.

"How on earth did you 'slip down a muddy slope'?" Zoe remarked after glancing at Sam's notes.

"She was too busy daydreaming about me." Tom quipped. "Besides, that's not how you should speak to your patients Zoe." Tom said sternly in a mocking tone.

"Yeah, I don't mean to be selfish here but we can stop joking about and focus on my leg please?" Sam demanded.

"Right, let's have a look then." Zoe sighed as she picked up a pair of scissors and gently cut Sam's leggings open, up to her knee whilst her full leg was still in the bright orange frac-pack to stabilise it. Her skin was smooth and soft and there was nothing out of the ordinary that would've suggested an injury - though Sam's pain said differently. "Right, am I allowed to cut the trainer off or do you want to try and get it off?" Zoe asked.

"Oi, I got these for her birthday." Tom moaned playfully.

"You can pull it off." Sam said to her husband.

"Are you sure? It doesn't matter, we can always get you a new pair." Tom stated.

"No, just pull it off. But be gentle." Sam replied as she picked up the entonox mouthpiece that she had discarded on the bed earlier and she began to take deep breaths of it.

"Okay... I'm being as gentle as I can, I promise." Tom said as he slowly undid Sam's shoe lace, and then held the sole of the shoe before he pulled the tongue up so that it would be looser and easier to take off.

"Ouch!" Sam whined as Tom placed his hand on Sam's ankle to steady it.

"Sorry." He apologised before he proceeded to pull the trainer off of Sam's foot leaving her plain black sock which, with a cut open pair of leggings, looked rather silly. "You'd better cut the sock off rather than pull it." Tom advised his colleague.

"Yes thank you Tom. Funnily enough, I have dealt with a few fractures in my career before." Zoe said sarcastically as she used a pair of angled scissors to slice the sock open and then once she'd peeled it off of Sam's foot, she threw it at Tom.

"Thanks." Tom replied in an equally sarcastic tone.

"Right, pedal pulse is not affected, blood flow to foot is fine," Zoe explained after briefly pressing down on the top of Sam's foot to make sure that the area went white, but quickly returned to Sam's skin colour. "But given how much pain you're in, and the vivid description of the cracking sound you gave to Jeff in the ambulance, I'm sure you're already assuming a fracture. Is there any chance you could be pregnant Sam?" Zoe asked softly.

"Nope." Sam replied bluntly.

"Okay. Fletch, can you book an x-ray for the whole leg please." Zoe requested as the nurse passed by.

"Sam? What happened to you?" Fletch asked worriedly once he'd noticed who the patient was.

"Tom pushed me over." Sam said innocently.

"No I didn't!" He shrieked.

"Nah, he didn't. I..." Sam began as she was reluctant to admit that she had fallen over. "I lost my footing." Sam stated.

"In other words, she fell arse over tit down a slope and smashed her foot into a rock." Tom grinned.

"And seeing as we're currently three doctors down when we don't need to be, Tom can you get changed into your scrubs and start working through the patients?" Zoe requested.

"But..."

"Tom, she's not going to get an x-ray for a few hours and then it'll take a bit longer for the radiologist to send the results down. Besides, I've seen you so it's not as if you can pull a sickie is it?" Zoe quipped.

"Fine." Tom huffed. "Right, I'll check in on you soon okay?" Tom said as he walked over and kissed Sam on the forehead.

"Can you bring me my hoodie from my locker please?" Sam requested.

"Sure." He nodded.

* * *

"Tom, I've got Sam's results if you want to come over." Zoe stated and the pair went over to Sam's curtained cubicle where Sam was grimacing and fidgeting so much as she could without moving her left leg.

"You okay?" Tom asked worriedly.

"I need another 5 of morphine." Sam demanded weakly.

"Why didn't you push the button?" Tom chuckled softly as he took her hand so that she could squeeze it.

"Because you said you'd come over at 4pm and that was about ten minutes ago; I was waiting for you." Sam replied whilst Zoe went and got the pain relief because Sam was competent enough to know the dosage but she was clearly struggling to deal with the pain in her leg.

"Sorry, I forgot." Tom apologised. "But hey, at least now you'll understand why some patients get annoyed. You've been waiting in her for ages." Tom said sympathetically as she had been waiting for hours to get a slot in x-ray, and then she had had to wait for her diagnosis.

"Right, Tom are you alright to do the honours?" Zoe asked as she came over with a plastic syringe in by kidney dish and he nodded before he injected the substance into Sam's hip again. "Right, I'm afraid it's not good news Sam. You've got a spiral fracture of your left tibia and fibula. So you're going to need to have a full leg cast, and stay in overnight for observation just so that we can ensure that your leg will be elevated, your cast can dry and make sure that there aren't any complications." Zoe explained.

"A full leg cast? For how long?" Sam demanded.

"Well I'll have to let the Orthopaedic surgeons talk to you about-"

"Surgeons? You think I'll need an operation?" Sam asked worriedly.

"Come on Sam, you know how it is. You'll probably need to wear a cast for a week or so and then you'll have another x-ray to make sure that the bones are healing. If they're not, then you'll be considered for surgery. But if not, then you'll just have to wear a cast for as long as you're told to, then possibly have physiotherapy and you'll be back on your feet fairly soon." Zoe explained.

* * *

Sam laid in a bed on an orthopaedic ward, staring at the ceiling as she attempted to fall asleep in the horrid hospital gown. She was in a room with five other patients, two to the right of her and three opposite her and because it had gone past visiting hours, Tom had been asked to leave. He'd even played the 'I work here' card but he wasn't allowed to stay later than other relatives, and so she would have to stay in hospital over night, by herself. She had her leg in a black cast, with just the tips of her toes sticking out, all the way up to her thigh, and about two inches away from where the cast would be considered a pelvic one if it went any higher. Plus she had her foot and lower leg on around three or four pillows to keep it elevated to prevent swelling.

'_Hey, how're you doing_?' Sam heard a buzz and she smiled as she picked up her iPhone and saw a message from her husband. Thankfully, she was well away from any intensive care units and so she was allowed to use her mobile phone as long as it was on vibrate or silent and because she was bored, she spent the evening texting her husband, who was replying just as fast as she was because he was lonely at his flat without his wife as he sat watching the late night TV shows.

'Can't sleep because someone's snoring next to me :( But the pain isn't too bad.'

_'Well I'll be with you as soon as I'm allowed on the ward tomorrow morning and I'll take you home. Zoe's letting me be an hour late if I need to be_'

'Bring me something to eat. The food here is disgusting :P'

'_Will do_.'

'Can you help me have a bath/shower before you leave for work please?'

'_Depends what time you get discharged but if I have time, sure. I look forward to it ;)'_

After a little while of texting her husband, Sam's eyelids got heavier and heavier, and she managed to drift of into a peaceful slumber, in order to save up her energy for her venture out of the hospital in the morning, that was sure to be rather painful.

* * *

**Thank you for reading :) I'd just like to give a shout out to TamForever for helping me decide on the title ages ago :)**


	2. Chapter 2

It was 7am when Sam awoke as the hospital had come back to life and nurses were running up and down the corridor to deal with the emergencies from people travelling to work. Sam groaned as she felt the terrible aching pain her lower leg below her knee.

"Do you need some more pain relief?" Sam jumped at the voice before she turned to see that it was in fact her husband sitting in a chair besides her.

"How long have you been there for?" Sam whispered so that she didn't wake the other patients in the room.

"Not long, I've only just been let in." Tom replied. "Come on you might as well get some more morphine before you leave here and it'll make the journey home less painful." Tom advised.

"Okay. Can you go and ask for some for me?" Sam requested.

"Sure. But you'll have to pretend to be in a lot of pain otherwise they'll just give you codeine. And I'll ask what time you can be let out of here too." Tom said as he quietly got up and then left the room. Soon, he returned with a registrar whom Sam had been seen by when she'd first been brought up to the ward, Dr Highson.

"I hear you're in a lot of pain?" He questioned.

"Yeah, I just woke up because of it, and it's terrible." Sam complained.

"Can you describe the pain to me please?" He asked.

"It's like this pulling feeling all the time towards my ankle, and I can really feel pressure in my lower leg."

"Do you, as a medical professional, think that the cast is too tight Sam?"

"No no, it's just like a throbbing kind of pressure, like pulsating. The cast is fine." Sam explained.

"Very well. May I ask if you'll be going home with anyone?" He asked.

"Yes, I'll be taking her home." Tom stated.

"Right, it's just morphine can sometimes make people drowsy and you cannot drive while on it. But seeing as you're in immense pain, I shall get you 5mg." He stated before he disappeared.

"Nice acting." Tom grinned.

"I wasn't acting, it really hurts." Sam stated.

"Alright, but at the end of the day, it's your fault for slipping in the mud." Tom grinned as he stepped back out of the reach of Sam's fist before she folded her arms across her chest. She was sitting in a hospital gown with her black full length leg cast propped up by pillows, and she was not happy at all.

"5mg of morphine." Dr Highson announced and he let Sam sit forward slightly so that he could untie her gown at the back and then inject the painkiller into her hip.

"Thank you." Sam said gratefully as she slowly leant back on the bed which Tom put up for her slightly at a 45° angle.

"Right, now I'd just like to explain to you what your treatment is going to be for your leg." He began and Tom set down on the chair besides Sam and held her hand gently. "I hope for you to make a full recovery, but I'm afraid the journey to that point, will be several months. I'm putting you on strict bed rest, which means you'll only be able to get up to go to the bathroom, otherwise, you need to keep your leg still, for 2 weeks. Then you'll come back and we'll give you another x-ray, with the cast still on to check if your bones are beginning to heal. If they aren't, then we will consider surgery, but hopefully we won't have to cross that path. If they are beginning to heal, then you'll spend a further 4 weeks in the full leg cast, then you'll have the cast removed and be put into a half leg cast which will end just below the knee, for approximately 8-10 weeks, and then you'll spend 6-8 wearing a CAM boot, and then you'll have another x-ray to ensure that your bones have healed. If they have healed, then you'll have to have physiotherapy sessions to get your knee and ankle joints back to your usual movement level." Dr Highson explained.

"Two weeks bed rest?" Tom questioned.

"Yes. And I'm afraid given the nature of your job - being on your feet all day - I strongly recommend that unless you want to delay your recovery even further, then don't return to work until you've got the half leg cast, which will be in approximately 6 weeks time if no complications arise." The doctor stated.

"When can she be discharged?" Tom asked.

"Um, let me just have a look." He stated as he pulled on a pair of gloves and inspected Sam's toes where they were poking out at the end of her cast that had her knee bent at a slight angle - the angle which everyone's leg naturally bent at.

"Can you just gently wiggle your toes for me?" He asked and Sam did so though it did cause her some more pain. "Brilliant. Well you certainly seem to have avoided a lot of swelling. As long as I know that you'll be going straight home and on bed rest, then I can discharge you now." He stated.

"What about showering?" Sam asked. "It's just, I was running when I injured myself so I could do with a wash." She admitted.

"Well, I'd say the journey home is going to aggravate your leg. So maybe leave it for this morning, and then if, in the evening, you're feeling okay and not in too much pain then you could try having a bath with one of those bags that seal out the water. Otherwise, you'd be better off just washing with some soapy water and a sponge, or using baby wipes but there's nothing else I can suggest to be honest."

"Right... Can you sort out my discharge forms so I can go home please?" Sam requested.

"Of course, I'll go and do that now." He stated before he left the room.

"Two weeks of bed rest and 6 weeks of no work? Do you know how bored I'm going to get? And how much weight I'm going to put on?" Sam exclaimed.

"Well, it's just one of those things isn't it? You can't do anything to change it now." Tom stated sympathetically. "Come on, look on the bright side. You're going to have me waiting on you hand, foot and finger. I bet you'd never imagined that would happen." Tom joked as he got up and pulled the curtain around Sam's bed.

"What're you doing?"

"Well I didn't think you'd want to go home in the lovely gown you're wearing so I bought you some clothes. And that wheelchair just inside the door of this room, that's for you." Tom smirked as he bent down and picked up a bag. "I nicked it from the ED, but they're not going to know it's missing; they've got dozens of them." Tom stated as he took out some clean shorts, a top, hoodie, underwear and a bra. "I'll help you take a shower or bath tonight then yeah?" He asked as Sam began to undo the ties on her hospital gown.

"Okay." Sam nodded.

"It'll probably be for the best anyway; I can help you wash every night because otherwise it'll be too much of a rush in the mornings because I'll have to shoot off for work." He stated as Sam pulled her sports bra over her head and Tom watched as she flawlessly put the clean padded bra on and clip it behind her back with one hand. "Don't worry, I'm gonna be here for you every step of the way." Tom said reassuringly.

"I'm not worried I just... I don't want to be a burden for you." Sam admitted as she pulled a shirt on over her head.

"You're not a burden you soppy cow. When I said in sickness and in health, I meant it." Tom said sternly.

"I'm not sick though." Sam quipped.

No but I suppose you could say you're in poor health or something. Look, I'll look after you. And it'll be fun." He smiled.

"In what way is agonising pain fun?" Sam questioned and Tom thought about it for a little while before he changed the subject.

"Right, get those dirty pants off and I'll put these ones on for you." He smirked and Sam reluctantly took the gown off completely and then began to pull down her plain black boyshorts underwear - of course Sam being the tomboy kind, she wasn't into the fancy lingerie at all which was just one of the things that made Tom loved about her; she didn't give a damn what he thought, she just wore whatever she wanted to.

But she got stuck half way because she couldn't bend her knee at all, and she couldn't bend forward because her hip would hit the cast and because it was rock solid, she couldn't lean forward any more without causing herself pain. "Oh right, so for the next 6 weeks, I get to change your underwear for you do I?" Tom grinned as he pulled the black pair off and then pulled a clean royal blue pair of a similar style underwear on all the way up to her thighs so that she could pull them up properly - knowing him, he'd probably give her a wedgie though she wouldn't be sure if it was on purpose or not.

"What shorts did you bring?" Sam demanded.

"Your denim low rise ones." Tom stated as he straight the folded pair out and then gently put both of her feet through the leg holes and then he pulled them up to her thighs again so that she could pull them up and do the button and zip up. "Right, you're in luck. On the way out I remembered to bring your hair brush." Tom stated as he handed it to Sam before she began brushing it through her long, luscious locks.

"Did you bring any deodorant?" Sam asked.

"Oops..."

"Never mind, I'll get some when we get home. Tooth brush and toothpaste?"

"Yeah, it forgot those too." He admitted.

"Don't worry, the clothes were the most important thing I suppose."

"Fine but I'm still not giving you a kiss until you have brushed your teeth." Tom quipped. "Ive got your breakfast in the car by the way." He stated.

"What is it?"

"You'll find out when we get down there." Tom stated.

"Tom." Sam demanded.

"I made you a carrot and celery juice at home, and I got you a flaxseed, cranberry and cinnamon muffin from the health store on the way here." Tom stated as he got up and pulled the curtain back.

"Mm, have I ever told you how much I love you." Sam smiled.

"Yeah, but only when it involves food." Tom smirked.

* * *

"I feel like an invalid." Sam grumbled as she sat in a wheelchair that had a leg rest to keep Sam's cast elevated, whilst she and Tom were in the lift on the way up to their flat. She couldn't even wheel it herself because one: her hands were slightly grazed from her fall and so they were a little sore, and two: her cast significantly increased her weight and so she couldn't move herself very far without becoming exhausted.

"That's because you are one." Tom quipped. "What? And invalid is a person made weak or disabled by an illness or injury." Tom stated as he pushed Sam's wheelchair out of the lift and along the corridor.

"I just had no idea how heavy the cast would be." Sam admitted.

"Well you shouldn't be lifting it too much anyway." Tom stated as he stopped Sam besides him and then took out his keys to unlock their front door. "Right, I'm already half an hour late for work, so if I help you onto the sofa are you going to be alright for me to go?" Tom asked.

"Well I..." Sam was about to ask if he could get her some painkillers and a few drinks and snacks, and put them within arms reach but apparently he had already thought of that because as he opened the front door, Sam saw the their corner sofa with a chaise end, was fit for a queen with blankets and pillows on one bit of it for her to lie down on, and on the other area of the sofa was covered in wrapped gifts, a small pile of coloured envelopes and then a table that had been pushed into the corner gap of the sofa which had a lunch box that she usually took to work on it, along with several drinks, boxes of painkillers, snacks, the TV remote, her iPad, kindle, phone and the home phone.

"Right," Tom pushed Sam until she was just in front of the sofa and then he crouched down besides her so that he was at her level. "Hopefully, the only reason you should need to get up should be for the toilet and if you want, I can pop back here in my break and lunch break and help you to get to the bathroom. And as for the painkillers there, well it depends how bad it is, but I got you nurofen plus which has ibuprofen and codeine in it so you can take that. Or if the pain isn't too bad then there's just regular ibuprofen or paracetamol there." He explained.

"And what're all the presents?" Sam asked.

"Well, there's a few from people at work, as are the cards, but most've them are from me. And they're not exactly exciting presents but it's just a few bits that I thought you'd want because I knew you'd be on some kind of bed rest and you wouldn't be able to work with a cast like that." Tom stated. "I wasn't going to wrap them up but I thought it'd give you something to do and keep you occupied so I used up all the spare christmas and birthday wrapping paper we had." He smiled.

"Tom this is amazing, thank you." Sam said gratefully and Tom had to raise up a little bit so that he could hug her.

"You haven't seen what I've gotten you so I wouldn't thank me just yet." He quipped. "Right, let's get you onto the sofa." Tom announced and so Sam put her arm around Tom's shoulders before he very carefully picked her up and then placed her down on the sofa where she shuffled back until she was leaning against the abundance of pillows and Tom put several underneath her leg to keep it propped up. "Do you need the toilet before I go?" He asked as he folded up the wheelchair and put it against the wall to save space.

"No, I'm fine thanks." Sam smiled as Tom had helped her into the disabled toilet in the hospital before they'd left.

"Alright well, I shall pop back during my break to see how you're getting on and-"

"D'ya know what? I normally last all day at work without having to use the toilet so I think you'd be alright just popping back at lunch just in case." Sam stated.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I can always text you if I need your assistance." She smiled.

"Make sure you do, don't try getting up by yourself." Tom said sternly.

"I won't. See you later." Tom kissed Sam on the cheek before he grabbed his keys and hospital ID card.

"Bye." Sam waved at him as he headed for the door and then just like in her hospital room, Sam was left alone.

She turned to her side to the mound of presents before she decided to be polite and open up the cards first. There was one from Tom with all sorts of dirty jokes in it, presumably to keep her entertained, as well as an individual card from Fletch, Ethan, Zoe and Charlie, and then a group card from Robyn, Rita, Ash, Cal, Jeff, Dixie and the others at the ED. She put the cards up on the table in front of her before she began making her way through the presents. From her colleagues she received a full leg cast cover which would protect her leg from getting wet so that she could shower or bathe properly as well as several pairs of extra stretchy thick socks to go over her foot and keep her toes warm, some magazines and a puzzle book - the knew better than to get Sam something edible like sweets or chocolates because, though she'd like to eat them, she simply wouldn't because she just didn't eat unhealthy things, least of all when she was out of action and couldn't exercise.

Then she was left with the small mound of presents that was from her husband and each gift was as thoughtful as the next: a Netflix subscription, a wrist strengthening ball and hand weights (to prepare for when she would be on crutches), a year long subscription to 'Women's Fitness' magazine, a £25 iTunes card for numerous songs that Sam had wanted to get, a white and a gold sharpie marker to write on her black cast (she had refused to get a bright coloured one like pink or green), a multi pack of nail varnishes and nail varnish remover to give her something to do and to paint her toenails that were just sticking out, some flavoured lip balms and exactly 10 pairs of shorts from matalans, all in different colours, but all in a size 10 that would easily be worn over her cast without the worry of them stretching because they stopped before her cast started and if they were too loose around her waist she could pull the strings to tighten them. Though Tom being Tom, had actually wrapped all 10 pairs of shirts individually!

* * *

Thankfully, the hospital was only a 5 minute walk from their flat so as soon as Tom was on his 40 minute lunch break, he took a speedy walk back to his home and let himself in where he found Sam, where he had left her, on the sofa.

"How're you getting on?" He asked kindly.

"Thank you so much for all of this. Everything is just great." Sam smiled.

"You're welcome. Just let me know if there's anything else that you want and-"

"Can you help me get to the toilet please?" Sam asked as she had been rather desperate for the past half an hour but she didn't want to disturb Tom at work so she had waited.

"Yeah, sure." He nodded as he moved the table out of the way and then lifted Sam up bridal style before he carefully carried her through to the bathroom. He stood her on her good foot, right in front of the toilet, and the he pulled the door closed most of the way and waited for her outside. Soon, she finished and Tom helped her to hop over to the sink to wash her hands and then he carried her back to the sofa.

"Thanks."

"No problem." Tom smiled. "So, what've you been up to?" He asked.

"I watched 'Saving Mr Banks' on Netflix, whilst using the hand weights. And I started to plan what I want to buy on iTunes with the money but I'm yet to decide what I want exactly yet. Oh and I ate my lunch a bit early." She admitted.

"How early?" Tom smirked.

"11am." Sam said quietly and Tom laughed before he picked up the ball of wrapping paper that Sam had tidied it all up into and he put it in the recycling bin.

"Well seeing as I'm on cooking duty for the next two weeks at least, I'm gonna start cooking some of Jamie's 15 minute meals for dinner rather than fish finger sandwiches." Tom announced.

"Don't be too adventurous." Sam warned cheekily. "Just start with a basic recipe like a salad or soup."

"I would say don't doubt my cooking skills Mrs Kent, but who am I kidding?" He smirked. "How's the pain?"

"I took the nurofen plus and it's fine when I'm still but, moving is quite painful."

"You think you're going to be okay for a bath tonight?" He asked.

"Yeah. Besides, people from the ED got me this." Sam stated as she picked up the full leg cast cover.

"Oh right. I was going to pick one of these up to be honest but I wasn't sure if they're effective."

"Well I should hope so; I'm not spending the next 6 weeks without having a proper bath or shower." Sam stated sternly.

"Do you know what's gonna make me laugh?"

"What?"

"When you have that cast taken off, your leg is going to be extremely hairy." Tom grinned.

"You're really not funny." Sam moaned.

"And the even funnier thing is, is that you're going to have the full leg cast taken off, and then a half leg cast put on almost straight away so from below your knee down to your ankle, is going to be even worse because you won't be able to shave that for about 16 weeks in total." Tom smirked.

"Y'know, this cast is rock solid so I reckon if I kick you in the nuts right now you'd be in a lot of pain." Sam growled.

"Yes but you can't kick me because you can't move it; you'll only prolong your recovery, and it'll hurt you just as much as it'll hurt me." Tom stated.

"No but I'll be keeping a tally of how many kicks you deserve so that after give had these two weeks of bed rest, I can save them up and do them all in the space of an hour." Sam remarked and Tom just smirked before he went and sat next to her on the sofa and put an arm around the shoulders.

"I've had loads of people asking when they can come and see you." He stated. "And Fletch was offering to come back during his lunch every other day and alternate with me. But of course that's only if you're alright with him helping you get to the toilet and back."

"Yeah, that'd be fine. It'll give you a break from looking after me as well."

"Don't say you're alright with it just because of me, if you'd rather I come back every day, I don't mind." Tom stated.

"Of course you mind Tom. I know you're trying to make me feel better but as you said this morning, I'm an invalid, and I'm sorry that you're having to look after me. I'd probably get a bit annoyed if i had to look after you, but I'd still do it-"

"Sam, you're only going to be an invalid for two weeks whilst you're on bed rest." Tom interrupted. "If it was for 8 weeks or something like that then I'd be quite annoyed, but it's only for two weeks. And I can look after you for those two weeks, because I love you." Tom smiled as he leant in and kissed Sam on the cheek. "Right, is there anything I can get you that you're going to want for the next four hours or so?" Tom asked. "I'll have to get going soon." He added.

"Could you get some cold water from the fridge for me? And some ice cream wouldn't go amiss either." She smiled sweetly.

"Sure. Are you getting too hot? Do you want me to leave the balcony doors open? Because it is quite warm in here."

"Um... No don't because if I get too cold I won't be able to shut them. Thanks for the shorts by the way. They're gonna come in handy over the next few weeks plus I needed some new shorts anyway." Sam said to her husband who was getting what she had requested in the open plan kitchen just behind her.

"Do they fit alright?"

"I don't know, I haven't tried any on yet but I'm sure they'll be fine." Sam replied.

"Right, Ben and Jerry's chocolate brownie ice cream, and two cold bottles of water." Tom announced as he handed her a bowl with two scoops of the ice cream - he knew she didn't like big servings - and then he put the water on the table and put it back into place for her. "What do you want for dinner tonight? I'll stop at the shops on the way home and get a few bits."

"I don't mind as long as it's relatively healthy." Sam shrugged. "But um, could you get some more fruit? I'll eat more of it now rather than snacking on other bits."

"Of course. Anything else you need?"

"Nope."

"Alright well, I'd better be heading back now okay?"

"Yeah, thanks for coming back."

"No problem, I'll see you later." Tom leant across the sofa and softly kissed her on the lips before he pulled away and left to make the quick walk back to work.

* * *

Once Tom had ran the very warm bath of clear water, he wheeled Sam into the bathroom so that she could get ready for the wash that she was so desperate for. Tom watched as she pulled her shirt and bra off, followed by her shorts and underwear which she managed to kick off with her healthy leg, so that she was sitting naked on top of the blanket in her wheelchair within only her cast covering some flesh and then she looked up at her husband.

"Let's get this on you then." Tom said as he knelt down and opened the small box containing the thin plastic covering that would protect her cast from getting wet. He gently covered her foot and then unrolled it all the way up to the top of her thigh where an elastic seal was tightened just above her cast to prevent any water from getting in whilst Sam sat with on arm across her lap and another across her bare chest. "Alright, you ready to get in? I'll lift you in, it'll be easier."

"No, you'll probably put your back out." Sam protested.

"Sam, you're not as heavy as you think." Tom chuckled softly as he put one of her arms around his shoulders and then he lifted her up. "It's not too hot is it?" Tom asked as he hovered her above the water.

"No, it's fine." Sam smiled as he gently lowered her into the bath and her left leg floated on top of the water as the protective cover had some air in it, and no water was getting in. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Tom replied. "Right, do you want to give me a shout when you want to get out, or shall I stay here with you?"

"You can try out my new set of wheels." Sam said as she nodded to her chair and Tom smiled was he sat down in it, wheeled himself forward right in front of the bath and then put the brakes on. She clearly didn't want to be by herself in case anything happened, she just wouldn't directly admit it. Though the next two weeks were bound to be tough for the couple, and that would just be the tip of the iceberg for Sam's long recovery.

* * *

**Thanks for reading this chapter :) Please leave a review if you could :D**


	3. Chapter 3

Sam was smiling as she sat on the sofa with her full leg cast propped up by pillows whilst Tom joined her in the living room on a Friday evening, doing the ironing which he hadn't done for a long long time.

"Don't forget the collar on that." Sam pointed out to Tom as he ironed a pale blue checkered shirt belonging to her.

"Who irons collars?" Tom questioned like she was being ridiculous.

"Me. Now do it." Sam ordered so Tom rolled his eyes before he set about pettily ironing her collar. Still on bed rest for another week, Sam was getting rather bored, but Tom was doing his best to look after her and she really appreciated his effort, even if she didn't always show it. "Tom..."

"Yeah?"

"I um, I'm due on tomorrow so can you take my stuff that's in my underwear drawer and put it on the shelf next to the toilet please?" Sam requested timidly. She still needed to be either carried to the bathroom, or wheeled there but she didn't want to have to stop in her bedroom to get supplies before going to the bathroom every time and she knew she'd have to tell her husband sooner rather than later.

"Yeah sure." He nodded before he noticed a rather astonished and impressed look on Sam's face. "What?" He asked innocently.

"Nothing I just... I kinda thought you'd be more immature or childish about it."

"And say what?"

"Probably make a joke using the word bloody in it." Sam quipped.

"I've got one joke. You wanna hear it?" He asked.

"Go on then." Sam sighed.

"My ex said that I am going through a really immature period and that, if I don't grow up, it's going to erect a barrier between us. I replied, 'Ha-ha, you said period and erect...' " Tom grinned and Sam just rolled her eyes. "Oh c'mon, that was funny."

"Yeah, of course it was." Sam said sarcastically and Tom presumed that she just wasn't in a good mood so he left it at that and continued with the ironing.

* * *

The next day, which was a Saturday, Tom had just taken Sam to the toilet before he brought her back to the living room and he laid her down on the sofa.

"Right, I'm just gonna go shopping, is there anything you want?" He asked as he grabbed his wallet and keys from the side.

"Um... Yeah. Can you get me some more pads please?" Sam asked as it was too difficult for her to use tampons because she had very little balance and she wasn't going out anyway so she had gone back to her early teenage ways of using sanitary towels for the duration of her period.

"Yeah sure. But you'll have to tell me which specific ones you want otherwise I'm gonna get it wrong."

"To be honest I don't really care. Just get bodyform pads, one of the normal packs and then one of the night pads, the longer ones."

"Right..."

"Tom if you get the wrong ones it doesn't matter, I'll still use them." Sam said to ease Tom's confused face and to relieve some of the pressure that he would be under to get the correct items.

"Right, I shall be back soon then."

"Oh and can you get me some mushrooms for an omelette please?"

"And who will me making that omelette?"

"You of course." Sam smirked.

* * *

After having dinner, Sam was laid on the sofa with Tom's arms around her as they watched late night chat show, when Tom decided to speak up.

"Because you're on, I've been thinking about the purpose of menstruation and I was wondering what you thought about starting a family." Tom began.

"Not while I'm like this Tom, it's frustrating being in this cast and it's still going to be months until my leg is back to normal. I'm sorry-"

"No, don't be sorry. I didn't think about the whole thing with your leg." Tom stated before an awkward silence fell over both of them. "I'm just going to go to the toilet." He lied but before Sam could speak, he got up and locked himself in the bathroom. He didn't really need to go, he just felt rather down heartened after his rejection to try for a baby from his wife. But at the end of the day, he knew she was in no fit state to carry a baby anyway. It would be far too much of a strain on her leg.

* * *

Finally, Sam's 2 week appointment had rolled around and she hobbled out of the hospital on crutches feeling like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders because she had just had a second x-ray and had been reassured that her bones were beginning to heal by themselves, and that she didn't need an x-ray. Because of of that, the bed rest had been lifted and, though she was a little wobbly on her crutches (which was to be expected for her first time on them), she was ecstatic to be able to get around by herself, even if it was only short distances that she could manage.

"If you're feeling up to it, why don't we go out somewhere for lunch to celebrate to good news?" Tom suggested.

"I could do with some fresh air so maybe we could go for a picnic in the park?" Sam replied.

"Yeah sure. As long as you don't slip on the mud." Tom quipped.

"Oi, I can kick you now so watch it." Sam warned playfully.

* * *

The next week, Sam had been wearing the full leg cast for 3 weeks, and she was expected to have it on for a further three weeks but she really was beginning to feel dirty and sweaty, especially with the hot weather because it was towards the end of June. Tom of course knew how she was feeling because she was making herself physically distant from him and wouldn't allow him to cuddle up to her because she'd just say it was too hot to do so, or because she felt unclean so he had organised a surprise for her.

"Right come on you." Tom ordered as he stood next to the sofa and handed Sam's crutches to her.

"Where're we going?" Sam asked confusedly.

"You'll see." He smiled and Sam noticed that he had her gym bag on his back.

"It's too hot to go to the gym Tom." Sam sighed as she had been with him once or twice to either use the weights there, and for Tom to assist her while she did sit ups to keep her flat stomach, flat.

"No, we're not going there. Just trust me, you'll like it." He smiled so Sam reluctantly shuffled to the end of here sofa, heaved herself up and then followed him down in the lift and into their car.

* * *

"Why are we at the hospital Tom?" Sam demanded as he went around to her side of the car after putting the gym bag back on his back and he helped her onto her crutches.

"Because, I've pulled a few strings so that I can change your cast to a clean one for you, and once I've taken that cast off, I'll take you in a wheelchair to the disabled showers, and you'll have to sit down on a chair in there, but you can have a proper shower as long as you don't put any weight on your foot. Then I'll replaster your leg with a black cast again so that your orthopaedic doctor won't know it's been changed." Tom explained. "How do you like the sound of that?" He asked and he grinned once Sam had thrown herself at him and wrapped her arms around her neck. "I take it it's a good idea then yeah?" He chuckled.

"Thank you." Sam said gratefully. "Though I'm surprised Zoe allowed it." Sam admitted as they began walked towards the ED.

"She doesn't know about it." Tom admitted. "I was worried she'd say no, so I didn't tell her, and Fletch has gotten all the equipment I need, and put it in here oncall room, which he has put as taken, so no once else will go in there." Tom stated.

"Alright, we'll just have to be discreet won't we? And if Zoe does catch us, we can just say that my cast got wet in the bath and there's a 5 day waiting list to get it redone." Sam replied.

"Mrs Kent, you naughty woman." Tom winked as they walked into the entrance and thankfully, amongst the abundance of people walking around, Sam and Tom managed to sneak out of reception, down a corridor and into the oncall room where Tom locked the door, pulled the blinds shut and then flicked the lights on. "Right, I just want to point out that I am only going to do this, if you promise me that you're going to keep your leg still when I take you for a shower, and that you won't put any weight on it okay? Because I could get into trouble for doing it." Tom said sternly.

"I promise." Sam nodded.

"And I purposely didn't bring you a razor because you won't be able to shave your leg; your skin will be too fragile." Tom added.

"Well as much as I'd like to protest, I'm just glad I'm getting a clean cast so, I'm fine with it." Sam nodded as she laid down on the bed and Tom pulled up a chair besides it, with an equipment trolley besides him.

"Would you like to keep your cast young lady?" Tom asked mockingly.

"Do you really think I want to keep something that probably costs about 75p to make and that stinks of sweat?" Sam questioned.

"Alright well, just lie still, relax and I'll get this thing off." Tom stated as he pulled on a pair of sterile gloves.

* * *

"There we go." Tom smiled as he looked at his wife whom had been lying patiently for around 20 minutes by the time Tom had taken off the long cast because he had to be careful of her broken bones which were still healing. Sam carefully propped herself up on her elbows to look at her left leg to see that her skin was incredibly dry and rough where the cast had been, and it was covered in dark hairs.

"I bet I look so attractive right now." Sam said sarcastically and Tom laughed as he got the wheel chair ready and hung her gym bag on the back of it.

"Right, I'm coming in the shower with you okay? I don't want you moving, and I'll help you wash your legs."

"Fine by me." Sam nodded as she ever so slowly shuffled to the side of the bed and into the wheelchair which had a leg support for her left leg to keep it sturdy. "Hang on, how are you going to get to the disabled showers without Zoe or someone else seeing us?"

"We're not going to the patients disabled showers you donut. We're going to the staff disabled one just next to the regular staff showers so we'll be well out of the way of resus and cubicles." Tom stated before he switched the lights out and wheeled Sam to their destination before he locked himself in the disabled wet room which had a separate small room coming off of it where there was a bench along the wall and a couple of low hooks on the wall.

He got out two towels and hung them up ready for when they would get out, and then he grabbed a small toiletry bag that contained shower gel, shampoo and conditioner for Sam.

"Okay, let's get you undressed first." Tom began so Sam pulled her shirt over her head and then pulled her bra off so that she was completely topless as she sat in the wheelchair. "Tell me if it hurts but I'll be as gentle as I can." Tom stated as, whilst Sam elevated her pelvis, Tom pulled down her shorts and underwear at the same time, and he was ever so careful as he took them off so that he didn't accidentally jog her broken leg. Thankfully, because it had been three weeks since the incident, Sam was no longer in constant pain and she rarely had to take painkillers so, he didn't hurt her.

"Come on then, your turn." Sam grinned as Tom pulled his shirt off and then took his sandals, short and pants off. "Have you got anything planned for tonight?" Sam asked suggestively. They hadn't had sex once since she'd injured her leg because she had been in far too much pain, but now she supposed it wouldn't do any harm. In fact, it would probably do them both a lot of good.

"No why?" Tom asked curiously and then he saw the small smile on her lips and he knew what she meant. "Your cast will still be wet so it'll be a lot heavier than usual." Tom warned.

"I know, but I'll be lying down so it won't make a difference." Sam replied innocently.

"Let's just get your new cast sorted first." He smirked as he wheeled her chair into the wet room and up to the disabled chair in the shower. He helped her get on to it, and then once he'd gotten the wheelchair out of the way, he turned the shower on so that Sam could have the best wash that she'd have had for 3 whole weeks.

* * *

Tom was just gently rubbing a small amount moisturiser into Sam's injured leg so that it would be too dry, when Fletch knocked and quickly entered the oncall room.

"How're you getting on?" He asked the couple who both had wet hair, but had changed into clean clothes and Sam had a pair of shorts on so that Tom would be able to replaster it easily.

"Thanks for getting the stuff ready for us Fletch, I appreciate it." Sam smiled.

"No problem. You must've been sweltering in that heat out there with your whole leg in a cast."

"Just a bit." Sam scoffed as Tom put the moisturiser away and then sat back down next to her on a chair besides her bed.

"Do you need a spare hand redoing the plaster?" Fletch offered.

"I could do with a spare _leg_." Sam quipped. "Y'know, one that isn't broken."

"I'm afraid I can't help you there." Fletch smirked.

"I think I'm alright with it, but thanks." Tom replied.

"I've lost so much muscle on my leg." Sam complained and Tom couldn't protest; her left leg was much smaller and skinnier than her right.

"Yeah but you've put twice as much back on your arms. You're practically hench." Fletch laughed as Sam's sleeveless top showed off her biceps that showed without her even having to flex.

"I need them to heave myself around with a stupidly heavy cast on my leg." Sam stated bluntly as she glanced at her arms.

* * *

With her new, fresh cast on her leg, Sam was lying on the sofa watching TV whilst Tom put their dinner on. But she jumped as Tom suddenly came and sat next to her and wrapped his arms around her from the side.

"Dinner's probably going to be about half an hour." He stated.

"Right..." Sam replied confusedly as she wondered why Tom was being so intimate.

"And I know a great appetite building activity if you're still up for it." He added and Sam suddenly realised what he was up to.

"Go on then. Take me to the bedroom." Sam demanded.

"Why would I do that when we can do it right here?" Tom smirked as he pulled a square, foil condom packet out of his pocket.

* * *

"I can't believe we haven't done this for 3 weeks." Sam whispered as she laid on her side on the sofa with Tom's arms around her. Both of them were naked with a blanket underneath them to protect the leather sofa whilst the TV continued in the background after it had been put on mute so that it didn't disturb their love making session.

"I can, I was desperate for that." Tom grinned as he crept his arm up from around her abdomen to cup one of her breasts.

"Did you put a timer on for dinner?" Sam questioned.

"Of course. Though it's probably still got another twenty minutes so if you want to rest for five, we can go for round two; we've got time." Tom smirked.

"I'm up for it." Sam nodded. "Though you'll have to get another condom." She added as she had watched minutes ago as Tom took the condom off, knotted it and then threw it into the small bin besides the sofa and then smugly commented about how good his aim was - in more than one way.

"You do realise that we've got to make up however many times we've missed sex in the last three weeks." Tom said cheekily.

"Well, given that I've felt nothing but pain and boredom over the last three weeks, that is perfectly fine by me." Sam replied and Tom chuckled softly before he got up to go and get what he needed from the bedroom.

**Thanks for reading! Please review :)**


	4. Chapter 4

Finally, after having her entire left leg in a cast with her ankle and knee immobile, Sam had her cast removed and replaced with a cast that finished just below her knee, and was once again black even though she could choose from over a dozen colours - she didn't fancy the neon pink or green let alone the other colours. And as she used her crutches, which she was now an expert on - to travel out to the car, Tom watched her try to bend her knee a little as she had been given exercises from her orthopedist to get her knee back up to it's usual range of movement.

"You know I've got to have this cast on for 10 weeks?" Sam began.

"Yeah." Tom nodded.

"Can you change my cast for me after 5 weeks please?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure. It'd be my honour." Tom grinned as he opened Sam's car door and watched her slowly got in. Before he closed the door and then got in the driver's side. "How's your knee feeling then?"

"A bit stiff and achy but I'll get used to it." Sam replied. "There's just so much more I can do now; I can take a shower by myself, cook dinner, get around the flat." Sam listed. "And of course, I get to go back to work on Monday." She smiled.

"Make sure you take it easy yeah? You've still got a long way to recover because even after you get that cast off, you'll have to wear a boot." Tom stated. Though he was both relieved and disappointed at her newfound independence because he going to miss the fact that he got to help her bathe and do simple things like go shopping for her (she couldn't go shopping alone because she couldn't push a trolley or hold a basket whilst she was on crutches but now she could hop using the trolley because the cast was half the weight of the previous one) but he was also going to be elated that he no longer had to wait on her hand, foot and finger.

"I know." Sam nodded.

"I'll help you with those exercises for your knee when we get home." Tom stated.

"Mm. Can you rub some moisturiser into my thigh for me please?" Sam requested as her thigh had such dry, cracked skin that was beginning to peel because it had not seen light, nor fresh air or water for 6 weeks. And though it was hairy, she knew it would be too sore to try and shave and her doctor had told her not to for at least 3 or 4 days.

"Of course I can." Tom nodded.

* * *

"Welcome back!" Everyone chanted in the staffroom as Sam entered before Tom where all of her colleagues were standing and there were balloons and a couple of hammers to celebrate Sam's return. With a half leg cast, Sam was a lot more mobile on crutches though it didn't mean that she didn't get tired from time to time because her arms weren't as strong as she wanted them to be. But she still had nearly 10 whole weeks left on crutches so she was sure to get stronger.

"Thank you." Sam smiled.

"Here, we even got you a tailored uniform." Fletch grinned as he picked up a pair of turquoise scrub bottoms which had had the left leg cut off just below the knee so that she could tuck it in to her cast at the top; otherwise she'd get too hot.

"Wow, they look great." Sam said sarcastically but appreciatively as she received the trousers and then went over to her locker to get changed.

"Right, come on you lot. Get on with what you're paid to do." Zoe ordered and everyone groaned as they went to get on with their jobs leaving Sam and Tom to quickly get ready. Tom smiled as Sam put her crutches aside, pulled her shorts off and then went to pull her 'tailored' scrub bottoms on, but she lost her balance and began to fall backwards.

"I got you." Tom said reassuringly as he held her upright whilst she tied the drawstring to tighten around her waist before she stood back up and put her arms in her crutches.

"Thanks." Sam smiled as she leant with her back against the locker whilst she pulled her shirt over her head and then put her scrub shirt on. "Wow, I forgot that these are even more comfortable than pyjamas." Sam grinned.

"Okay, you ready to get started?" Tom questioned as he pulled his stethoscope around his neck whilst Sam closed her locker.

"Yep." Sam nodded and Tom opened the door for her, so that she could hop out and make her way to cubicles.

* * *

After a long day of being on her feet all day, Sam was sitting on the edge of their double bed whilst Tom sat behind her with his legs straddled around her, as he rubbed deep heat into the backs of her arms as she sat in a strapless bra and bandeau shirt.

"Do you want to do your knee exercises again once this has soaked in?" Tom suggested.

"No, I'm alright thanks."

"You're not going to get any stronger if you don't do them." Tom warned.

"I know but... I don't feel well enough to do them; I've got a tummy ache so I was planning on just having a lie down for a little while and putting some of that deep heat on my abdomen." Sam admitted. It had been blissful the last time that she had menstruated because she had been on strong painkillers for her leg, and she hadn't had period pains at all. But she was no longer on regular painkillers for her leg and so her cramps had returned.

"Oh right. Well I'll rub it in for you, come on. Lie down here." Tom ordered softly as he moved out of her way so that she could shuffle herself back on the bed until she was lying down where she would usually sleep. She then rolled up her shirt to her navel and folded the top inch of her shirts down so that Tom knew where she wanted it, before she closed her eyes and let Tom work his magic. She could already feel the warming feeling in the backs of her arms which had previously been tense and aching because she'd been on her feet all day, but within minutes, Sam felt the Sam warming sensation in her abdomen and just like a hot water bottle, only more effectively, it began to melt her cramps away and she had a feeling that it was helped by Tom's soft hands on her skin. "We can stay here for as long as you like." Tom whispered as he put the tube of deep heat on his bedside cabinet and then he laid next to her on the mattress. However, given that they had already had dinner, Sam soon fell asleep as the warm, soothing feeling around her body sent her off into a deep, peaceful slumber to rest her for the next day of work.

* * *

**Thanks for reading, please review :)**


	5. Chapter 5

"I'll change your cast tonight then." Tom said quietly as he and Sam got changed for their shifts.

"Yeah oka- woah!"

"Every time." Tom chuckled as his wife fell backwards almost every single time she went to put her scrub bottoms on, and Tom was always there to support her and prevent her from falling.

"It's hard to balance with this thing on." Sam complained as she gestured her half leg cast before she leant against the locker and tucked the left end of her scrubs (all of which had been cut off up to the knee) into the top of her boot and then she picked up her crutches again.

"Fletch is going to sort out the equipment in the oncall room for you again, and I'll take you for a shower just like before." He smiled as Sam had been wearing the cast for 5 weeks, and she was expected to wear it for another 5 weeks, but she didn't like how sweaty her cast got given that it was early August and temperatures still soared during the day.

* * *

"Sam, can you come and have a look at Mrs Méndez's dressing please?" Fletch requested as he approached the doctor who was looking through some notes at the nurses' station.

"Yeah sure, just give me two secs." Sam replied without taking her eyes off of the paper, and so Fletch went back to the patient. Once Sam had finished reading though the information, she put her arms back into her crutches (she had been leaning against the side for balance) and began to faultlessly hop over to where her expertise was needed.

However, just steps into her journey, Sam - who was unaware of it at the time - had just entered a floor what was wet because it had been cleaned just moments ago after a spillage of a fizzy drink earlier. But as soon as the bottom of her left crutch touched a puddle that remained, it gave way under Sam's weight, slid forward and sent Sam crashing down onto the floor below her and she smashed the back of her head on the cold hard floor.

"Ah!" Sam gasped quietly as she shook her hands out of the crutches and then clasped her throbbing head, just under her ponytail to try - unsuccessfully - to relieve the pain.

"Sam!" Tom shouted after coming through the doors to cubicle as he abandoned his stable patient and ran over to his wife and it appeared that Zoe had noticed Sam at the same time as him as she clopped over. "Are you okay?" Tom asked worriedly as he knelt down on the floor only he realised as soon as he touched the cold surface that it was very damp and saw the wet patches on her scrubs. "Why isn't there a wet floor sign?" Tom demanded from his boss.

"I don't know Tom, I'm not the cleaner am I?" Zoe protested as she raised her skirt an inch so that it was above her knees and then squatted down to Sam's level as well.

"Sam, are you okay?" Tom repeated as he put his arms around her shoulders from behind but seconds later, Sam twisted her head to the side and heaved and coughed as she vomited onto the floor. "Alright... It's okay." Tom said softly as he held Sam's ponytail out of the way and rubbed her back before he glared at Zoe. "You finished?" Tom asked as she slowly sat up.

"I couldn't- I couldn't break my fall, my arms were in the crutches-" Sam stuttered.

"It's alright, it wasn't your fault." Tom said reassuringly as he put both of his hands on her shoulders so she knew he was there behind him and she didn't have to twist her painful head.

"Right, Max can you get some cleaners here now please." Zoe said to her secret partner. "And Sam, let's get you up onto a bed." Zoe ordered as she pointed over to an empty bed in a cubicle.

"I'm fine." Sam croaked.

"No, come on. You've hit your head and you've been sick, you need to go for a head CT." She said sternly.

"How's your leg?" Tom questioned.

"A bit painful." Sam admitted.

"You think you might've done any damage to it?" Tom asked worriedly as he knew that the last thing she needed was more damage to delay her recovery.

"Um... It's possible. Plus my cast is wet from the puddle where I slipped so I need that changed, and i could do with a dry scrubs." Sam explained disjointedly.

"Stop going into doctor mode." Tom chuckled softly. "We'll sort you out, just relax." He added. "Zoe, you need to find out who's on cleaning duty and who is responsible for all this." Tom demanded.

"Tom, it was an accident." Zoe sighed.

"So? She's got a broken leg, what if she needs an operation now because of this?" Tom demanded.

"Tom the last thing this ED needs is a law suit." Zoe warned.

"I don't care about what this ED needs, I care about my wife Zoe." He snapped.

"Tom please, please don't shout." Sam croaked as she clutched the back of her head.

"Sorry, sorry." Tom apologised as he tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. "Come on, let's get you on a bed." He said as he waited for Sam to put one arm around his shoulders before he did the same to her, and then his other arm under her knees before he picked her up and carried her over to the empty cubicle.

"Tess, can you book a head CT and a left leg x-ray for Sam Kent please?" Zoe sighed before he she walked back over to the bed. "Okay, Sam is there any chance you could be pregnant?" She asked the doctor who was laying back on the bed that Tom had sat up by 45°.

"No." Sam shook her head as she was due on the next week and she and Tom were always careful.

"Alright well I'm sending you for a head CT and x-ray to check your leg out. I'll get someone to fetch your notes down from orthopaedics so we can compare your previous x-rays and check for any damage. But I'm afraid the scanners are booked up as usual so it looks like you're going to have to wait a while."

"Can you get me some painkillers please? My head is banging." Sam said quietly to her husband.

"Yeah, sure." He nodded as he held her hand.

"I don't want to sue, Zoe, as long as Tom doesn't have to work and he can stay here with me."

"Fine." Zoe nodded reluctantly as, though she knew Sam probably wouldn't follow up on a law suit, losing two doctors for a day would be far less damaging than losing a lot of money that could be spent on vital equipment and staff. "In fact, if you want Tom, you could change Sam's cast." Zoe pointed out as she saw that the black was staining the white bed sheets underneath Sam's foot because it was dripping wet and had already begun to lose it's shape.

"Yeah, I'll get it done." Tom nodded.

"Right, I'll let you know when we've got a rough time for your scans. Do you want the curtain closed?"

"Yes please." Sam requested so as Zoe stepped out of the cubicle, she pulled the curtain around leaving Tom with his wife alone. "God, my head feels like I'm having the worst hangover of my life." She complained.

"Alright, I'm going to go and get you a couple of bits alright?"

"Can you get me some dry scrub bottoms please?" Sam requested.

"Sure." Tom nodded. "I'll get the stuff you redo your cast as well. Looks like we won't have to sneak around after hours to do it after all." Tom smirked before he kissed Sam on the forehead and disappeared from the cubicle.

* * *

Sam was beginning to get bored of waiting for her husband who was taking forever - though it probably just seemed like a long time because Sam was sitting alone with nothing to do, and what was even worse was that she was in pain. When finally, the curtain opened and Tom came in pushing an equipment trolley, followed by Fletch who was carrying a stool, and then he closed the curtains behind him.

"Why is it always you who slips over?" Fletch asked jokily.

"What're you doing here?" Sam questioned.

"I'm gonna help Tom get your cast off, and keep you company whilst he does so." Fletch replied as he sat down on the stool whilst Tom sat down on the chair next to her bed.

"Right, here is a bottle of water to rinse your mouth out after puking. Which, by the way, very nearly got on my arm." Tom said and Sam rolled her eyes before she took a couple of sips of the cool liquid. "And these are so that I don't get a whiff of sick every time you talk." Tom joked as he handed Sam a pack of minty mentos and Sam just squinted her eyes at him before she took one and began chewing it. "Right, we're going to get you changed into these," Tom began as he picked up the pair of denim shorts and sleeveless burgundy checkered shirt that she had worn to work that morning. "So that we can change your cast without your scrubs getting in the way."

"And I'm going to sort out the plaster, and I promise I won't look." Fletch stated as he put the equipment trolley behind him, swivelled around on his chair and then began preparing things so Sam quickly, but carefully got changed into her own clothes and then took the nurofen plus that Tom had gotten her to ward off her headache.

"Right, we're presuming you want your cast to be black again yes?" Tom questioned.

"Of course." Sam nodded.

"Okay, now this is a special saw, but I promise you it won't hurt. Look you can-"

"Stop trying to take the mick and just do it." Sam ordered as she rested her head back on the pillow and then closed her eyes. She had seen (and performed) far too many cast removals in her life so she just kept her eyes closed because the lighting only hurt her head even more, and soon, Tom and Fletch had cut the cast on both sides and they were ready to take it off. She opened her eyes as she felt a little bit of tugging, but soon, Tom lifted off the top part of her half leg cast, and then he gently elevated Sam's leg and held it securely whilst Fletch removed the bottom half of the cast.

"Wow." Was all Sam could say as she looked at the bottom half of her leg which hadn't been shaved in 11 weeks. The skin was terribly dry and cracked, and some of it was peeling off.

"That looks very sore." Tom commented.

"It's nowhere near as bad as my head." Sam quipped.

"Tom, the zoo just called. They're missing a gorilla!" Fletch joked and Sam couldn't help but laugh too.

* * *

"I'm sorry I was a bit harsh with you earlier." Tom apologised to Zoe in her office after being made to go there by his wife. "It's just as soon as I saw her on the floor there, something clicked y'know? It had to be someone's fault and it wasn't hers."

"It's alright. You just care about her, you couldn't help that." Zoe replied. "How is she?"

"She's had the leg x-ray back and luckily, there's no damage. We're just waiting for her head CT to come back and hopefully it should be clear, and then I'll take her home." Tom explained.

"Okay. Well I've contacted the cleaning company about the water and they say that there's a shortage of the wet floor signs, and they had no choice about having to clean that area because someone had spilt coke all over it. But technically, because there wasn't a wet floor sign I have to let you know that you are eligible to file a complaint."

"It's alright, Sam doesn't want to so we're leaving it." Tom stated.

"Thanks. And I'll try to go and chase her scan results to see if we can get her out of here sooner rather than later."

"Okay, cheers." Tom smiled before he left the office to go back to his wife.

"Did you apologise?" Sam demanded.

"Yes." Tom said like a naughty school boy as he sat on the chair next to her bed.

"Properly?"

"Yes." He huffed.

"Good. You still haven't thanked me by the way."

"For what?"

"For getting you practically a whole day off of work."

"I'll thank you later if you're feeling up to it." Tom quipped.

"Oh I'm sure I will be." Sam grinned.

"Really? Even considering that your head collided with a solid floor this morning?"

"I've had ibuprofen, codeine and about three litres of water, I'll be fine." Sam smirked.

"As long as your CT scan comes back fine; we've still got to wait for that-"

"Samantha Kent's CT scan." Zoe announced as she arrived with an iPad in her hand.

"Well?" Sam prompted.

"Give her a minute, she's got to have a proper look; you don't want her overlooking something." Tom smirked as he held Sam's hand and they sat patients for a long minute until Zoe looked up.

"All clear." She stated. "You've got a healthy looking brain Sam."

"Yeah but she's got a dirty mind." Tom grinned as he got up and pulled his jumper on - he had gotten changed from his scrubs so that he would be ready to take her home when she was discharged.

"I think you'll find that's you Tom." Sam remarked. "So I can go then? I'm discharged." Sam concluded.

"Yeah. But seeing as you've hogged a bed all day for no reason, I'll be expecting you two here bright and early tomorrow morning." Zoe said firmly yet playfully.

"And I'll be expecting all floors to be dry." Sam quipped as she got off of the bed.

"Come on, let's get you home." Tom smiled as he handed Sam her crutches and they made their journey out to the car to go back to their flat and make love because they both only had one thing on their minds; each other.

* * *

**Thanks for reading, please review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Finally, after 10 weeks of having her lower leg in a cast, Sam had just had it removed and then replaced by a black CAM boot which was tightened around her foot to provide support. It had air pockets in the boot which were inflated until they were cushioning Sam's foot.

"How does it feel?" Tom asked as they made the five minute walk back to their flat. By foot it was a short journey, however, they knew all of the short cuts through various buildings and parks whereas it actually took longer for them to drive because of traffic lights and road works. And Sam had reassured Tom that she was able to make the journey home without causing any further damage.

"Um, a bit weird but I'll get used to it." Sam replied. "It's kind of like walking a balloon that I know isn't going to pop." She added.

"At least you can take it off to have a shower now. That skin from below your knee to the end of your toes hasn't been aired for more than half an hour for over 16 weeks. And you can start wearing skinny jeans again." Tom stated.

"Mm, and now we can start having baths together again." Sam added.

"I look forward to it."

"Mm. And I _don't_ look forward to physiotherapy when I get this boot off in 6 weeks time." Sam stated.

"Well, at the end of the day, when you had the cast taken off, you said your foot and ankle were a bit numb. Plus your left left is a lot skinner than you're other leg."

"I know but I can build the muscle back up myself by exercising. Not having to go to some stupid physiotherapist where I have to lie on a bed for 45 minutes while she stretches my ankles out like I'm leaning to walk all over again."

"Well you kind of are in way. By the time you get your boot off, you won't have walked on it properly for 22 weeks. That's nearly 6 months."

"Whatever." Sam shrugged as they continued their journey. And just a minute or two later, Tom noticed that Sam was walking with an arm around her abdomen.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just a bit bloated." Sam admitted.

"Any particular reason why?"

"Premenstrual syndrome." Sam replied as she forced a smile and Tom went and put his arm around her shoulders as they continued to walk.

"Do you want me to pop down the shops and get some chocolate?" Tom suggested.

"Since when have I been the sort of woman to curl up in an armchair with chocolate and a chic flick?" Sam complained.

"You aren't, I just thought it'd be nice to have some chocolate but nevermind... Ooh, how about, I make us an ice cream sundae with some fresh fruit?" Tom suggested. "It'll be semi-healthy, and we only had a salad for lunch." He said as he fluttered his eyelashes at his wife. "Plus it'll be to celebrate that you don't have crutches or a cast anymore." He added.

"Go on then, but nothing too much and don't go skimpy on the fresh fruit." Sam ordered.

"Right, you go home, and I'll just pop to the tesco express around the corner." Tom smiled as he handed Sam the bunch of keys in her pocket and then changed direction and headed back to the shop that they had walked past not long ago.

* * *

Sam had been ordered not to turn around as she sat on the sofa whilst Tom messed around in the open plan kitchen behind her because Tom didn't want her ruining the surprise dessert he was preparing.

"Did I just hear squirty cream?" Sam questioned.

"Oi, stop listening and focus on the TV!" Tom smirked.

"I can't, I want to know what you're doing." Sam moaned.

"Well I'm almost done, just give me a couple more minutes." Tom smiled and Sam folded her arms across her chest and watched the evening news for a little while longer until Tom came and sat down next to her and put a tray half on his lap and half on her lap. On the tray was two tea spoons, and then one serving bowl that Tom had put a small tub of Ben and Jerry's banana split ice cream in, with a few marshmallows, a whole punnet of stalked strawberries and a few squirts of whipped cream. "Voila. Now dig in." Tom ordered and they both picked up a spoon and indulged in the great dessert.

* * *

"Tom where're the razors?" Sam shouted from the shower as he husband watched TV in the living room.

"I hid them." Tom grinned.

"Why?" Sam demanded and Tom got up from the sofa and went into the unlocked bathroom so that they didn't have to shout and he found his naked wife standing in the glass shower with her hands on her hips. The boot had been taken off for her to shower as she just put most of her weight on her right, uninjured foot.

"Because you shouldn't be shaving your leg yet." Tom stated. "You need to leave it at least 3 or 4 days for the dead skin to fall off, and then you'll be able to shave."

"And what about everything else?"

"What do you mean everything else?"

"How am I supposed to shave everything else other than my leg?"

"Ah, didn't think of that." Tom admitted.

"Go and get the razors Tom." Sam ordered.

"Fine but I'm gonna join you so I know what you're shaving." Tom smirked as he reached on top of the bathroom cabinet and pulled a disposable razor out of the packet before he quickly took all of his clothes off and then hoped in the shower and handed Sam the razor. "Go on, just lean on me." Tom offered as he knew that Sam was putting most of her weight on her right foot and so she was a little off balance. Sam gently leant back against Tom before she bent over and began applying shaving foam to her right leg whilst Tom put his hands on her hips to steady her. "See, it's not too bad is it?" Tom said happily.

* * *

Once Sam was content and fully cleansed, she exited the shower along with her husband and once she was dried with her wet hair up in a towel turban and he had just a pair of boxers on, she laid down on the bed in just a pale blue bra and matching boyshort underwear whilst Tom gently rubbed a rose oil moisturiser into Sam's legs, one of which was smooth and the other was uneven as some of the dried skin had come off, but some hadn't. After he had finished with her legs, he placed his hands on her flat stomach and slowly worked his way up until he cupped her breasts under her bra which caused Sam to open her eyes and raise an eyebrow at him.

"What? My hands smell of rose oil now and I still had a little bit of moisturiser on my hands; I didn't want it to go to waste." Tom protested innocently.

"Put my boot on for me." Sam ordered and Tom rolled his eyes before he picked up her black boot which took a couple of minutes to put on correctly because he had to use a small pump ball to make sure that the inflated cushions inside of it weren't too loose or too tight. "_Now_, you can get rid of that moisturiser." Sam winked and Tom grinned as he climbed on top of her and gave her a passionate kiss. He slipped his hand beneath her and unclipped her bra before he threw that off somewhere in the room and they engaged in making love to each other once more.

**Thanks for reading, please review :)**


	7. Chapter 7

It had been 22 weeks since Sam's original injury to her left leg, and finally, her bones were healed. She had been warned by her orthopaedist to go carefully, but she finally had nothing that she had to wear on her foot full time like a cast or boot. Granted, she had been advised to wear an ankle support for a couple of weeks whilst she got into the swing of things but she could finally wear a pair of shoes rather than just one shoe.

But, because her knee had been immobile for 6 weeks, and then her ankle for the full 22 weeks, Sam had to go for physiotherapy sessions three times a week for 45 minutes each time for approximately 8 weeks and because she wasn't particularly looking forward to them, Tom had volunteered to come so that he could help to take part in some of the exercises with her, and help her do some of them at home and he'd know what to do.

"Can't we just run away now? They'll never know. All they'll do is wipe my name off of the list." Sam whispered to her husband as they waited in a waiting room in a centre that was separate from the hospital but it was t too far from it.

"No, you need to do this. You can't even walk normally; you walk like a zombie at the moment because you're all stiff." Tom said sternly.

"Please can we go? I'll make something of yours stiff and we can go all day." Sam pleaded as she was desperate to get out of it.

"As fun as that sounds-"

"Mrs Kent to room number 13 please, that's Mrs Kent to room number 13 please." Was said out of the speakers.

"Room 13, great. That's unlucky Tom; we shouldn't go." Sam stated.

"Since when have you been superstitious?" Tom smirked as he grabbed her hand and dragged her down the corridor to the room. "It'll be fine." He added before he opened the door and made sure that Sam went in before him, just in case she decided to make a run for it.

* * *

It was the weekend and so after having a leisurely lie in, Tom had a good stretch and then padded into the living room where Sam was doing sit ups as she laid on a yoga mat on top of the carpet.

"Morning." Tom grinned as he laid on the sofa, on his stomach and propped his head up by his elbows so that he was looking down at her as she sat up and then back down again repeatedly. She was in just a pink sports bra, tight black shorts and a black ankle support over her left foot.

"28, 29, 30." Sam panted and once she'd finished, she jumped up to her feet and grabbed a glass containing a dark orange liquid where she had juiced carrots and celery.

"Pft, 30? I could do 50 easily." Tom joked as he stood up.

"Yeah, 50 chocolate bars." Sam quipped after finishing the drink completely.

"Oi, if we're talking about to chocolate bars we'd be talking in the thousands." Tom joked as he grabbed Sam from behind and pulled her backwards so that she landed on top of him on the sofa. "Y'know your physiotherapist said swimming is a good exercise for your knee and ankle?" Tom began.

"Mm."

"How about we go for a swim together?" He suggested. "We could go down to the leisure centre and swim for a while, then go out for lunch somewhere nice."

"And of course it's purely for the benefit of my ankle and not just an opportunity for you to see me in a bikini no?"

"No, it's not!" Tom laughed. "Look, if I wanted to see anything, I'd just do this." Tom smirked as he pulled Sam's sports bra up to her neck and let her breasts lay naturally on her chest before he pulled the sports bra over her head completely as she laid on top of him in just a pair of tight black shorts whilst he was only in his boxers that he had slept in. "You're so beautiful." Tom whispered as he trailed his fingers around individually around her flat stomach in circular patterns.

"And you're pleased to see me." Sam stated bluntly as she felt something beneath her.

"It's morning wood, I can't help it." Tom protested.

"Ooh um, actually, there's something I've got to do quickly." Sam said as she grabbed her sports bra and held it against her chest as she left the room before Tom could say another word. So Tom got up and went into the bedroom where Sam was sitting on the edge of the bed with the iPad on her lap at an angle so that he couldn't see it and she had put her sports bra back on.

"Do what?" Tom asked curiously.

"Nothing. Um, girls stuff." Sam replied but Tom could tell that she was lying.

"What kind of girls stuff?" Tom asked confusedly but as he stepped forward to look at the screen, Sam held the tablet against her stomach.

"It's just... Alright fine. I forgot to delete the internet history on here but it's not what you think." Sam said quickly as Tom grinned. "I was looking at birthday present ideas for you but I didn't want you to see what I've ordered." Sam replied. She wasn't lying because she technically had used money to secure something for his birthday, but it wasn't exactly a present; it was a holiday. And she had forgotten that before she went to bed the previous night that she had booked it completely And not deleted the history, just in case Tom checked.

"Is it expensive?" Tom asked excitedly.

"I'm not telling you."

"Big? Ooh, does it make noises and move? Or is it a car?" Tom asked.

"Tom I'm not telling you!" Sam laughed. "Come on then, get changed."

"For what?"

"Swimming? Duh."

* * *

After paying at the leisure centre and getting a disposable wristband attached to them each so that they couldn't stay in longer than they'd paid for because each time slot had a different coloured wristband, Sam and Tom walked past the gym and to the unisex changing rooms and once Sam had placed her bag down in front of a locker, two men walked past her and one wolf whistled whilst the other laughed.

"Jerks." Sam muttered.

"I'd take that as a compliment." Tom pointed out.

"Well, you're not me." Sam concluded as she pulled her top over her head revealing her black and white striped, padded bandeau bikini top.

"So am I going to get told off if I wolf whistle at you then?" Tom questioned as he pulled his shirt off.

"Yes. So don't." Sam concluded. "I'm just going to the toilet quickly, put my stuff in a locker for me please." Sam smiled after she'd pulled her trousers and flip flops off before she wandered off to the toilets in her bikini leaving Tom to sort out her things. A minute or two later she returned to the benches to find it filled with a group of men in their early 20s who had just come out of the gym, but before she tried to look for Tom, he came up behind her.

"I felt a bit outnumbered amongst all of them." Tom admitted. "You still need to put this on though." He stated as he handed Sam her waterproof ankle support which wasn't as strong as the one she used when exercising out of water, and it was made out of the same material that swimming hats were made of. "Right, what do you reckon? First to finish 100 laps?" Tom suggested jokily.

"Okay, sure." Sam nodded. "It'll only be... 2.5km."

"I was messing about, I wasn't being serious." He protested. "Besides, you shouldn't be doing that far, it'll be too much of a strain on your ankle."

* * *

After doing only a dozen lengths and then lounging in the pool for a while, Sam and Tom both got out and rinsed off in the showers before they went to their lockers where Sam saw far too much of some men that she'd have liked especially considering that some were elderly. And upon seeing his wife's discomfort about being the the room, let alone having to get changed there, Tom took her towel out of the locker that they were sharing so that she could wrap it around her. And then he grabbed all of their stuff and lead her around the corner to the toilets and went into the disabled toilets because all of the changing cubicles were busy after swimming lessons had just finished.

"What're you doing?" Sam asked confusedly.

"Just come in here." Tom said encouragingly and Sam went into the disabled toilet too and then Tom locked it behind her. "We can get changed in here, it'll give you a bit more privacy." He stated.

"Oh, thanks." Sam smiled appreciatively before she set about drying her body and hair and getting dressed.

* * *

In the evening, Sam and Tom laid in bed both on their sides facing the same direction so that Tom could wrap an arm around her abdomen and nuzzle his face into the back of her neck to give her a sense of comfort.

"When do I find out what you've ordered for my birthday?" Tom asked sleepily.

"When I decide to tell you." Sam replied as she thought about the surprise holiday she had booked. "And if any parcels are delivered, don't you dare open them." She added to make him believe he was receiving a gift.

"'Them'? So there's more than one?" Tom grinned.

"Just go to sleep Tom." Sam murmured.

"Alright, night night." He whispered as he leant forward and pecked her cheek before he got comfortable and they settled down for the night.

**Thanks for reading, please review :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**This is the last chapter and I had to upload later than usual today because I was busy earlier :)**

* * *

After a rare day that Tom was on shift but Sam wasn't, Tom exited the ED and was about to begin the short walk home when he jumped as a car horn sounded and he turned around to see none other than his beautiful wife, with the window wound down, smiling at him. He walked over whilst he took in here gorgeously long and thick straight hair with her sunglasses on the top of her head whilst she didn't need them.

"What're you doing here?" Tom asked confusedly as he got in the passenger's seat.

"We are going away for the weekend." Sam announced. "Plus we might be away for the rest of the week as well." She added sheepishly.

"What? I don't understand."

"For your birthday, we're going away and I've packed our bags and booked us both a week of work so we won't be coming back to Holby until next Sunday." Sam explained as she pulled away and began driving. "Well, it's not just for your birthday either, I wanted to thank you for looking after me-"

"You didn't need to." Tom interrupted.

"No but you _deserve_ a holiday. Those first two weeks when I was on bed rest and I was in so much pain, you looked after so, so well and I really am grateful for it." Sam stated. "Plus now that I've finished my physiotherapy sessions, I think that's something to celebrate as well."

"So where are we going?" Tom asked.

"I've booked us a nice little cottage in the Cotswolds, about just over an hour's journey in the car. And we've got an outdoor heated pool, a hot tub, and it looks out onto a lake about 10m from our back doors." Sam explained.

"Sounds lovely." Tom nodded. "Do you want me to drive?" He offered.

"Nope, you wouldn't have a clue where you're going." Sam replied. "There is one other thing that I thought we could use this holiday for." Sam began nervously.

"What's that?"

"If you want... Well I... You know when I still had my leg in plaster you said about trying for a baby but I said not while my leg is like this?"

"I think I know where this is going but yes I remember." Tom nodded eagerly.

"Well I'm due to ovulate in about three or four days, and I thought that maybe we could try for a baby. Well it's either that or we don't have sex for the next 9 days because I didn't bring any condoms." Sam admitted.

"Of course I want to try for a baby!" Tom exclaimed happily. "Sam this is a fantastic idea, thank you."

"Well, it's just something to say thanks for looking after me so we're even." Sam shrugged.

"Could we possibly stop at the services once we get on the motorway please?" Tom requested.

"I swear you have a bladder the size of a peanut." Sam remarked.

"I do not." Tom protested.

"You do! You cant go an entire night without waking up to go to the toilet and if you don't then it's because you go straight before you get into bed and then you're bursting by the time you get up."

"Maybe I just drink a lot."

"Or maybe you've just got a tiny bladder." Sam quipped.

"Maybe it's to make room for my other organs." Tom grinned.

"Considering the organs that you're implying are external and your bladder is internal, I don't think that plays a factor in the size of your bladder." Sam replied.

"Are you going to pull over or not woman?"

"Yes, when I find somewhere I will." Sam stated.

* * *

"Is a beautiful place." Tom announced once Sam had parked up on their shingled driveway outside the modern panelled cottage.

"I should hope so for the prices they charge." Sam muttered.

"Right, I propose we come up with a plan for the next 9 days so we know what we're going to do: Eat, have sex, sleep, have sex, swim, have sex, and then eat, and sex etc and just keep repeating it over and over." He smirked.

"Don't forget about drinking booze." Sam added as she opened the boot to reveal two large duffle bags, and then several crates of beer and a cool box and bags filled with food.

"Didn't you bring any wine?"

"No, I'm not drinking. If we're going to try for a baby, I want to do everything right." Sam stated. "But, that doesn't mean that you aren't going to drink, because if you refuse to do so, I will pour beer down your throat."

"Well then I'll pour something else down your throat." Tom joked.

"I do believe that that'll be an inefficient use of your resources given that I can't conceive through my mouth." Sam retorted.

"Oh trust me my dear, I have plenty of that resource; you needn't worry about wasting it." Tom said patronisingly.

* * *

"There's one thing that I want us to do while we're here." Tom stated as he and Sam sat at a table and chairs set just outside of their back door as they looked at the full moon shining down on the lake in front of them, illuminating the water and surrounding forests.

"What's that?" Sam asked curiously.

"I want me and you, to go skinny dipping in the lake." Tom announced.

"Are you kidding me?" Sam laughed.

"No, really. I want us to do it. So are you up for it?"

"Do you mean like completely naked nothing on whatsoever?"

"Well that is the general gist of skinny dipping yes."

"For how long?"

"However long we can stand."

"But it'll be freezing." Sam protested.

"Pwease? For me." Tom pouted.

"Maybe." Sam replied sheepishly before she took a sip of Pepsi Max that she was actually rather fond of given that she usually wouldn't touch it and would favour an alcoholic beverage.

"Right, there's something we've missed off of our plan for the week. I mean, we've eaten, we've swam in the pool, we will sleep a bit later, but there's something else we're missing... Oh yeah! The sex!" Tom said simply as he got up and pulled Sam's chair out. She smiled before they went into their bedroom with a four poster bed, and they had unprotected sex with the intention of creating another life. And that was what they did numerous times on their holiday along with enjoy themselves and relax. And, though Sam was reluctant at first, they did go skinny dipping in the end - but they only lasted a couple of minutes in the icy lake water before they ran out of the water and then bombed into their outdoor heated pool which was like a tub of boiling water compared to the lake.

* * *

It wasn't until just under two weeks later when Tom was watching TV, when he found out about the after effects of their holiday.

"Pause that for a minute." Sam ordered timidly as she stood with her hands behind her back.

"Sure. What's up?" He asked.

"I know you know nothing about the menstrual cycle which is why you left it to me to let you know when we could find out about the contents of my womb and... Well I kind of wanted to surprise you so I did a test." Sam stated as she brought out the test and held it in front of her, only with the screen facing her, not him.

"And?" Tom asked eagerly as he sat forward on the edge of his seat to hear the results.

"Well, it's still very early days and there's so much that could go wrong but..." Sam trailed off as she turned the test over and showed Tom the two strong pink lines.

"But nothing." Tom laughed. "You and I, are having a baby." He stated. "I mean, you're pregnant. Right now, inside of you there's a... And it's... Oh you have made me the happiest man alive." Tom stuttered as he stood up and wrapped his arms around her to give her a tight hug. "I love you so much." He said over her shoulder as he gently rocked her from side to side. "And I'm here for you no matter what okay? If you're craving something at 3 o'clock in the morning just let me know and I'll get it for you. Or if you're feeling weepy and you need a shoulder to cry on then-"

"Tom." Sam interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"Just shut up and kiss me." Sam ordered and so Tom did exactly what was asked of him as he leant in and planted his lips on hers. "We're having a baby." Sam smiled as they parted lips but kept each their foreheads pressed against the other's.

"You're going to be an amazing mum." Tom stated softly as he cupped her cheeks in his hands.

"And you're going to be the perfect father." Sam whispered. "Will you do me the honour of being my birthing partner?"

"Just you try and stop me from being there." Tom laughed. "Of course I will." He added. "All Ive got to do to keep you and our baby safe is keep you away from any mud or water in case you slip." He quipped.

"Right that's it!" Sam exclaimed as she picked up a pillow from the sofa and began chasing him around the living room. "I am fed up of you making jokes about me slipping! It was an accident." Sam laughed as she repeatedly hit him with the pillow once he was cornered.

**The End.**

* * *

**Sorry about the crap ending but I couldn't really think of another way to tail it off :/ Please leave a review if you could :)**

**This is just a quick note to say that although 'The Big C' was second voted favourite in my poll a few weeks ago, I think I will be writing Double Trouble (the one voted after The Big C) first, purely because I was struggling to write the Tam fic and if I'm not enjoying what I'm writing, then the end result is often very crap chapters... ****Hopefully any writers reading this will understand when you feel like writing a story one day and then the next you're not interested in it so The Big C is on hold for a little while whilst I write Double Trouble which I'm not sure when it'll be up :)**


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